Area: 125707,12 ха
Ownership: state - 30%; municipality - 27%; private - 43%;
Description:
A low-mountain region with rounded hilltops and comparatively open river valleys of the Maritsa and Tundzha tributaries, close to the state border with Turkey. The terrain altitude is between 50 and 856 m. On its territory there about 30 small settlements, the town of Topolovgrad and a poorly developed road network. Lower parts of the Sakar territory is occupied by farmland, which has replaced forests of Quercus pubescens and Quercus virgiliana. On about 15% of the area there are dispersed xerothermal grass associations, dominated by Dichantium ischaemum, Poa bulbosa, Chrisopogon grillus, etc., and, more rarely, meso-xerothermal vegetation. The shrubs of Paliurus spina-christi, mixed with Jasminum fruticans in combination and the xerothermal grass formations determine the comparatively high numbers of the Hare Lepus europeus and the Souslik Spermophilus citellus respectively. The region also supports broadleaved forests of “open” type, composed of Quercus pubescens and Quercus virgiliana with Mediterranean elements, at places with secondary origin (Bondev 1991). Many of the riverbeds and valleys in the Sakar are still fringed by old trees of White Poplar Populus alba, willow Salix sp., etc., which provide nesting conditions for the birds of prey.
Birds:
The area of Sakar currently supports 220 bird species, 59 of which are listed in the Red Data Book for Bulgaria (1985). Of the birds occurring there 96 species are of European conservation concern (SPEC) (BirdLife International, 2004), 11 of them being listed in category SPEC 1 as globally threatened, 23 in SPEC 2 and 62 in SPEC 3 as species threatened in Europe. The area provides suitable habitats for 76 species, included in Annex 2 of the Biodiversity Act, which need special conservation measures. Sixty-eight of them are listed also in Annex I of the Birds Directive and more than half of them breed in the region in significant populations. Sakar holds the biggest populations in the country of Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca, Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina, Booted Eagle Hieraaetus pennatus, Black Kite Milvus migrans and Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus. It is one of the most important areas in the country on European Union scale for the species mentioned above, as well as for the Levant Sparrowhawk Accipiter brevipes, the Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris, Calandra Lark Melanocorypha calandra, Greater Short-toed Lark Calandrella brachydactyla, Masked Shrike Lanius nubicus, Stone Curlew Burchinus oedicnemus, Montagu`s Harrier Circus pygargus, Syrian Woodpecker Dendrocopos syriacus and the Olive-tree Warbler Hippolais olivetorum. The Black Stork Ciconia nigra, the Grey-headed Woodpecker Picus canus and the Red-Backed Shrike Lanius collurio occur there with representative populations. With less numerous populations two other globally threatened species than the Imperial Eagle also breed in Sakar – the Corncrake Crex crex and the Saker Falcon Falco cherrug. Eigth more globally threatened species occur there on migration – Pygmy Cormorant Phalacrocorax pygmeus, Dalmatian Pelican Pelecanus crispus, Ferroginous Duck Aythya nyroca, Pallid Harier Circus macrourus, Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga, Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni and Great Snipe Gallinago media.
Threats:
The area of Sakar is used extensively by local people mainly for livestock and to a lesser extend for agriculture and forestry. It is sensitive to intensification of agriculture and forestry, as well as change of land use practices. A decrease in grazing followed by succession, as well as conversion of pastures to arable lands, causes loss of grassland habitats for birds (Calandra Lark, Short-toed Lark Calandrella brachydactyla, Corn Bunting Miliaria calandra) and the Souslik, which is the main food for the Imperial Eagle. The pesticides used there for agriculture are dangerous for birds. The dry grasslands are particularly vulnerable to fires, both natural and artificial burning of pastures. During dry years large parts of the site are burnt. The forests in Sakar are relatively small patches dispersed amongst open landscapes. Forestry activities related to cutting of old trees directly affect the Imperial Eagle, because the species uses only big old trees for nesting. Illegal cutting, firewood collection and afforestation with non-typical species reduce the quality of forest habitats. The investment project related to the construction of a large dam on the Tundzha river in the south-east part of the area will destroy the breeding sites of at least two pairs of Imperial Eagle as well as habitats for a complex of other species listed in Annex I of the Bird Directive and Annex 2 of the national Biodiversity Act. One of the potential threats both to the habitats and to the birds in the area is the development of wind turbine farms.
Legal protection:
Only 0.1% of the territory of Sakar is under legal protection. The existing 7 protected areas are designated or protection of landscapes, stony features or rare plants. In 1998 about 18% of the area is appointed as CORINE Site because of its European value for habitats, rare and threatened plant and animal species, including birds. In 1997 the area is designated as Important Bird Area by BirdLife International.
